Lotus Education & Arts Foundation

Over the last 30 years, Lotus has hosted over 600 artists or ensembles from over 120+ different countries or culturally distinct regions. The Festival regularly attracts an unusually multi-generational audience, participation from local and regional ethnic/cultural communities, and a significant out-of-town population from across the state and across the country. Estimates in partnership with our local Visitors Bureau calculate that Bloomington enjoys an annual economic impact of ~$500,000 on each Festival weekend.

Lotus transforms downtown Bloomington for the Festival, creating a pedestrian-friendly festival footprint and activating community venues and streets simultaneously with music and dance. Venues include a range of public spaces, from outdoor streets perfect for dancing to family-friendly city parks for interactive workshops, to intimate churches and art spaces suited for attentive listening and contemplation.

The Lotus vision of inclusion, diversity, and access also reaches into the wide scope of activities that Lotus offers free of charge on Festival weekend – 40+ hours of free outreach that invites participants from all economic walks of life. We present a free “Lotus in the Park” event with workshops and concerts, a free and interactive Arts Village displaying community-generated visual arts, as well as parades, processions, and exhibits. Lotus is committed to accessibility and to drawing the widest possible cross-section of participants to become part of the music and arts of the world around us.